Closure structure for containers for granular products



H. P. ABBOTT June 7, 1966 CLOSURE STRUCTURE FOR CONTAINERS FOR GRANULARPRODUCTS Filed May 5, 1964 INVENTOR. HORACE F! ABBOTT BY JAM/. 4

his ATTORNEYS amounts of the product in a relatively short time.

3,254,812 CLOSURE STRUCTURE FOR CONTAINERS FOR GRANULAR PRODUCTS HoraceP. Abbott, Old Greenwich, Conn., assignor to Lever Brothers Company, NewYork, N.Y., a corporation of Maine Filed May 5, 1964, Ser. No. 364,919

3 Claims. (Cl. 222-543) This invention relates to containers and, moreparticularly, to a novel and improved closure structure for containers,and principally for containers for granular materials.

Granular products for general consumer use, such as granular forms ofsoaps or detergents for dish washing or clothes washing purposes, areusually packaged in cardboard cartons. Such cartons are opened bypartially or completely removing the upper end of one edge or one end ofthe top, the removable part of the box generally being outlined withperforations or score lines to facilitate its removal. While in someboxes the piece removed remains hingedly secured to the box, there is noway of eifectively closing and sealing the box to prevent the contentsfrom inadvertently being spilled while handling or preventing moistureor foreign material from entering. Moreover, the simple opening in theend or top of the box is poorly adapted for the controlled discharge ofthe granular product therein, inasmuch as the opening is usually overlylarge and permits the passage of large When the user encountersdifliculty in dispensing the product, she will often shake the box toincrease the flow of the product and frequently thereby dispenses anexcessive amount. The use of cardboard boxes for such products,moreover, has the further disadvantage of permitting moisture to reachthe contents, if the box becomes wet, thereby sometimes consolidatingthe product somewhat into large chunks which are not readily orconveniently removed from the box, and even ruining the product.

Accordingly, I have provided, in accordance with the invention, a noveland improved container for granular products and, particularly, aclosure structure for such a container which enables a granular producttherein to be readily dispensed with considerable control by the userover the amount dispensed. Moreover, the closure structure includes ahinged cap which is connected to the container, and the container may beclosed and sealed after each use. By connecting the cap to thecontainer, it cannot be misplaced when the container is opened.

More particularly, a closure structure for a container, in accordancewith the invention, comprises a tapered nozzle having a relatively largelower opening and means for securing it to a receptacle at its lowerend. Preferably, the receptacle for use with the closure structure is inthe form of a moisture impervious bottle, for example, a bottle made ofpolyethylene or other plastic, rather than a cardboard box or the like.The nozzle and cap are also, pref erably, made of plastic, such as bymolding.

The walls of the nozzle taper upwardly and inwardly toward a smalleroutlet opening at its upper end which lies in a plane disposed at anangle to the axis of the nozzle. An inturned lip is provided about theperimeter of the opening and an undercut is formed immediately below thelip. The outlet opening of the nozzle receives a closure cap, which mayeither be formed integrally and hingedly connected to the upper end ofthe nozzle or may be formed separately and then connected to the nozzlesuch as by a snap-in arrangement. The cap includes a planar body portionwhich overlies and projects beyond the edge of the nozzle outlet openingand, further, includes a portion extending substantiallybeyond theupper- United States Patent ice most part of the inclined opening,thereby facilitating the removal of the .cap.

Projecting from the planar body portion of the cap is a rib having anoutwardly extending bead at its outermost end, the rib being receivablein the outlet opening of the nozzle and engageable with the inturned lipof the opening and the bead being receivable in the undercut adjacentthe nozzle inturned lip to hold the cap on the nozzle.

Adjacent the uppermost portion of the nozzle, that is,

' the portion lying adjacent the uppermost edge of the inclined upperopening, is an inturned wall portion which forms an angle with thelongitudinally adjacent wall portion of the nozzle. This inturnedportion of the nozzle wall, together with the inclination of the outletopening of the nozzle, provide improved and controlled flow of granularmaterial out of the container. More particularly, the nozzle is taperedand thereby guidesthe granular material smoothly toward the relativelyrestricted orifice or opening therein. By providing a relatively smallopening for the material to be dispensed from the receptacle, the amountwhich can flow from the receptacle during a given period of time isconsiderably reduced as compared to the amount which can flow throughthe large openings provided in present containers for such products.Accordingly, the problem mentioned above of the sudden outflow of largeamounts of material is substantially overcome. Moreover, the inturnedportion adjacent the uppermost part of the discharge opening serves as adarn, thereby confining or entrapping a marginal layer of the materialdirectly adjacent the opening. Accordingly, the-granular material flowsout of the container by sliding along this entrapped marginal layer andis somewhat retarded thereby, especially when the container is tilted atsmaller angles. Such sliding provides considerably greater control overthe outflow rate than the control that can be had when the materialflows over the relatively smooth surface of a container wall.

An important feature of the invention is the provision on the planarbody portion of the cap of an extended portion adjacent the uppermost oroutermost part of the discharge opening which may be engaged by a fingeror an implement to lift and open the cap. In addition, the cap ishingedly connected to the nozzle at the lowermost or innermost edge ofthe top opening. Accordingly, the user is naturally induced by thegeometry and the structure of the nozzle and cap to tilt the receptaclein a direction such that the material in the container will bedischarged over the outermost edge of the opening. When the material hasfilled the lower and outermost portion of the nozzle adjacent theinturned part thereof, thereby creating a marginal layer of entrappedmaterial, the material then slides over this marginal layer and over thelip of the outlet opening in a curvednarrow stream having a fairly largecircumferential dimension relative to the opening, the material flowingover a relatively large portion of the circumference of the top opening.The angular orientation or inclination of the opening of the nozzle withrespect to the nozzle axis results, of course, in a similar inclinationof the opening to the surface plane of the material when it is beingpoured from the container. The inclination,moreover, is such that theedge of the opening angles away from a vertical plane tangential to theoutermost extremity ofthe opening, thereby facilitating the passage ofmaterial over the edge of the opening. In a nozzle having an openingnormal to its axis, there is little or no departure of the edges of theopening from a vertical plane when the nozzle is tilted, and,accordingly, such a form of nozzle opening tends to obstruct the outflowof material.

For a better understanding of the invention reference may be made to thefollowing description of exemplary embodiments, taken in conjunctionwith the figures of the appended drawing, in which:

FIGURE 1 is an elevational view in section taken generally along theaxis of a closure structure installed on a bottle, only a portion ofwhich is shown;

FIG. 2 is-a plan view of the underside of the cap, as viewed generallyalong the line 22 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a partial elevational view partly in section, illustrating thetop portion of a nozzle similar to that in FIG. 1 and having a capconnected thereto in a manner slightly different from the attachment ofthe cap in the embodiment of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 4 is a view in section on an enlarged scale taken transverselythrough a cap connecting arrangement for the cap in FIG. 3, the sectionbeing taken generally along the line 4-4 of FIG. 3 and in the directionof the arrows.

Referring to FIG. 1, the closure structure is installed on a bottle 12,only the upper portion of which is illustrated. The bottle 12 may be ofany suitable shape and size and is preferably made of a plastic such aspolyethylene by a suitable molding or casting technique. The upper endof the bottle 12 shown is formed as a frustum and has an enlarged bead14 which defines an opening 16 through which the product in the bottle12 is conveyed into the closure structure 10. About the outer perimeterof the bead 14 is an inwardly extending groove 18 which includes agenerally axial innermost base portion 20 and a beveled base portion 22adjacent thereto. The groove 18 is spaced from the uppermost edge 23 ofthe bead 14, thereby providing an outwardly extending upper flange 24.The edge of the flange 24 is spaced from the plane of the outer surfaceof the part of the bottle 12 and is conical in shape.

The closure structure 18 comprises anozzle 26 and a cap 28 connected tothe nozzle. The nozzle 26 is conicalshaped, tapering in a direction awayfrom the bottle 12, and includes an inturned lower flange 30 which has asize and shape complementary to that of the groove 18 in the bottle head14 and is received therein. More particularly, the inturned flange 30includes a beveled lower edge 32 which slides along the outwardlyextending flange 24 of the bottle bead l4 and cooperates therewith tomutually deflect the bottle and nozzle when the cap structure isinstalled so that the inturned flange 30 will snap into place in thegroove 18. When the flange 38 is in position in the bottle groove 18,the nozzle 26 is substantially permanently attached to the bottle 12 byengagement of the flange 24 over the upper edge of the flange 30.Moreover, the complementary shapes and sizes of the flange 30 and thegroove 18 provide a tight seal between the nozzle and bottle.

At the upper end of the nozzle 26 is an outlet opening 34 ofsubstantially smaller size than the opening 16 of the bottle 12, anddefined by an inturned flange 36. The flange, and therefore the opening,lies on a plane transecting the axis of the bottle and nozzle at anangle. Thus, the opening includes an uppermost point 38, with respect toa transverse plane normal to the nozzle axis, and a lowermost point 40,all other points on the inturned flange 36 lying between transverseplanes through the points 38 and 40. In the zone of the uppermost point38 on the flange 36, the wall of the nozzle 26 includes an angularlydisposed Or inturned portion 42.

The cap 28 in the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1 is formed integrallywith the nozzle 26 and includes a relatively narrow connecting extension48 projecting laterally from adjacent the lowermost point on the outletopening 34 thereof and, as best shown in FIG. 2, a generally flat,circular body portion The cap 28 illustrated in FIG. 1 is in its openposition, and therefore the upper end as illustrated in FIG. 1 actuallyconstitutes the underside of the cap when it is installed on the bottle.On the underside of the cap is a rib 52, which, like the opening 34, isannular. The annular rib 52 includes an outwardly extending head 54.

The inturned flange 36 at the upper end of the nozzle 26 includes aninwardly extending lip- 56 and an undercut immediately below the lip.The cap 28 is installed in the nozzle opening 34 by bending it over andpressing the annular rib 52 into the opening. To facilitate bending thecap into its closed position on the nozzle and, moreover, to provide forbending at the proper location to bring the cap rib 52 into registerwith the opening, a laterally extending groove 60 is provided on theunderside of the extension 48. With the cap 52 in register in theopening 34, the cap is then pressed downwardly into the opening, therebycreating mutual deformation of the lip 56 on the nozzle flange 36 andthe flange 54 on the cap bead 52. The flange 54 on the cap bead 52 thensnaps into place in the undercut 58 on the nozzle 26, thereby removablysecuring the cap 28 on the nozzle and providing a tight seal.

Referring now to FIG. 2, the body 50 of the cap 2 8 is generallycircular, but the center of the circle is offset from the center of theannular rib 52 and is therefore offset from the center of the nozzleopening 34. Accordingly, as best shown in FIG. 3, an edge zone 61 of thecap body 50 which lies adjacent the uppermost point 38 of the nozzleoutlet opening projects a significant distance beyond the edge of thenozzle. The zone 61 of the cap thus provides a convenient place forengagement by a finger of the user or an implement to lift the cap.Moreover, the features of the cap 28, including its hinged connection tothe nozzle, its angular orientation with respect to the axis of thebottle and nozzle, and the olfsetting of the body portion from thecenter of the outlet opening 34 cooperate to clearly indicate to a userthat the product is to be poured over the lip at the uppermost point 38on the nozzle, as will be described in greater detail hereinafter.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, the nozzle 26', cap body portion 50' and theclosure arrangement between the nozzle opening 34' and the cap rib 52'are identical to the embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2. However, a differentmeans for connecting the cap to the nozzle is provided. Moreparticularly, a cap 28' in FIGS. 3 and 4 is molded separately from thenozzle 26', and then is connected to the nozzle by means of a laterallyextending boss formed on the nozzle adjacent the lowermost point 40' ofthe opening 34'. Formed in the upper side 72 of the boss 70, which sidelies in the plane of the opening 34, is a recess 74, which, as shown inFIG. 3, is generally trapezoidal at a section taken along a radiallyextending plane of the nozzle and, as shown in FIG. 4, is generallyrectangular in a plane taken transversely through the boss 70'. Formedin the side walls of the recess 74 and lying generally parallel to theplane of the upper side 72 of the boss 70 are grooves 76.

The body portion 50' of the cap 28' in FIGS. 3 and 4 includes a narrowextension 78 which has a downstanding boss 80 formed integrallytherewith. The boss 80 has a size and shape complementary to the recess74 in the nozzle boss 70 and includes beads 82 on its opposite sideswhich are received in the grooves 76 in the recess 74 of the boss 70.Accordingly, the cap 28 in the embodiments of FIGS. 3 and 4 is connectedto the nozzle 26 by inserting the boss 80 on the cap extension 78 intothe recess 74 in the nozzle boss 70, thereby engaging the beads 82 inthe grooves 76.

It is preferred that the connecting arrangement of the cap-to the nozzlein the embodiment in FIGS. 3 and 4 be dimensioned so that the forcerequired for complete detachment of the cap 28' from the nozzle 26' willbe substantially greater than that required to remove the cap from thenozzle opening 34 to open the container. In this way, the user mayretain the cap connected to the nozzle so that the container may beclosed after each use. To facilitate opening the container withoutdetaching the cap from the nozzle, a transverse groove 84 is provided inthe upper surface of the cap extension 78 which facilitates bending thecap back upon its removal from the opening 34' in the nozzle 26', sothat the product may be dispensed. If desired, the user mayalternatively disconnect and discard the cap completely by pulling itout of the nozzle boss 70.

To-dispense the granular material contained in the bottle 12, the userfirst places a finger or implement under or grips the cap zone 61(adjacent the upper end 36 of the nozzle opening 34) and then pullsupwardly to remove the cap from the nozzle outlet opening 34. The bottle12 is then tilted over, such that the uppermost point 38 on the nozzle26 is tlited downwardly. Upon tilting, the material flows from thebottle and travels along the zone of the nozzle longitudinally below theinturned portion 42 (the left side of the nozzle 26 as illustrated inFIG. 1). Upon further tliting of the bottle the material flowing alongthe aforementioned zone is blocked by the inturned wall portion 42 andbuilds material is being dispensed, and a cap for said smaller opening,and means for securing said nozzle to said receptacle including aperipheral groove formed in a rim on the receptacle, said rim on thereceptacle having a taper matching and contiguous to the nozzle, saidgroove including an upper surface lying in a plane substantiallyperpendicular to the axis of the receptacle and defining up and forms amarginal layer adjacent the uppermost end 38 of the opening 34. Whenadditional material moves into the nozzle 26, it flows past themarginally collected layer and over the lip of the opening 34.

As previously described, the angular orientation of the opening 34facilitates the flow of material through the outlet opening. readilycontrolled, inasmuch as the angularly disposed portion 42 of the nozzlewall serves as a dam and provides a marginal layer so that materialbeing dispensed flows along this marginal layer. Accordingly, thefrictional resistance encountered by material flowing out of the bottleis greater, and changes in the angle of tilting will tend to have arelatively limited efiect on the material flow. This is quite unlike thesituation wherein a granular material flows along a smooth surface whichprovides relatively little frictional resistance to the flow of materialalong it, thereby enabling relatively minor changes in the angularposition of the aforementioned surface to cause large changes in thedischarge rate of the material.

The improved flow properties, as described above, in a nozzle having aninturned portion 42, which serves more or less as a dam in the nozzle,constitutes one of the significant improvements in packaging forgranular materials provided by a closure structure, in accordance withthe invention. In addition, a cap is provided which is connected to thenozzle, and therefore is easily replaced on the outlet and cannot bemisplaced or lost. A closure structure, according to the invention, thusprovides significant advantages over known forms of packaging forgranular materials. In addition, the closure structure is readilyformed, preferably from a polymer such as polypropylene, by a suitablmolding process, the molding being facilitated by molding th nozzle 26separately from the bottle 12.

It will be understood that the above described embodiments of theinvention are merely exemplary. Many variations and modificationsthereof will occur to those skilled in the art without departing fromthe spirit and scope of the invention. All such variations andmodifications are intended to be within the scope of the invention asdefined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A closure structure for a receptacl for granular material, comprisinga tapered nozzle having a larger opening at one end and a smalleropening at the other end, said smaller'opening being disposed in a planeforming an angle with the axis of said nozzle, and said nozzle having aninturned wall portion adjacent the outermost edge of said smalleropening forming an angle with the adjacent wall portion of the nozzle,and defining a portion in said nozzle wherein material is entrapped whenother Moreover, the material flow can be more a sharp corner with therim, and a rib formed on the nozzle and receivable in said groove, saidrib having an upper surface engageable with said upper surface of thegroove, thereby locking the nozzle in place on the receptacle, and saidrib having a conical lower surface to facilitate attachment of thenozzle on the receptacle rim by pressing the nozzle thereon, therebycausing the conical surface to engage and slide over the rim and tomutually deform the nozzle and the receptacle rim to enable the rib tosnap into the groove, and the circumferential edg of the rim portion ofthe receptacle being located inwardly of and engaged by the nozzle andbeing spaced inwardly of the contiguous outer surfaces of the nozzle andrim.

2. A closure structure for a receptacle for granular material,comprising at tapered nozzle having a larger opening at one end andmeans for securing it to the receptacle adjacent said large opening,means defining a smaller opening at the other end of said nozzle, saidsmaller opening being disposed in a plane forming an angle with the axisof said nozzle and having an outermost edge and an innermost edge, aninturned lip extending around the perimeter of said smaller opening aninturned wall portion on said nozzle adjacent the outermost edge of saidsmaller opening and forming an angle with the adjacent wall portion ofthe nozzle and defining a portion in said nozzle wherein material isentrapped when other mate rial is being dispensed, a cap for saidsmaller opening, said cap including a planar body portion and a sealingr1b projecting from said body port-ion and arranged to be received insaid smaller opening, said sealing rib having an outwardly extendingbead engageable with said rib of said smaller opening to removablysecure said cap therein, and means connecting said cap to said nozzleincluding a boss extending laterally from said nozzle adjacent thelowermost portion of said inclined smaller opening, a recess formed insaid boss opening at the upper surface of the boss, an elongated grooveformed in each of a pair of opposite walls of 'said recess, a narrowextension formed integrally with said planar body portion of said cap, aboss extending downwardly from said extension having a shape and sizecorresponding substantially to said recess in said nozzle boss, andelongated beads formed on the opposite sides of said boss, said beadsbeing engageable in the grooves in said recess walls and arranged tosecure said cap to said nozzle with a securing force substantiallygreater than the force holding said cap in said nozzle opening.

3. A closure structure according to claim 2 wherein the narrow extensionon said cap has a transverse groove formed therein to facilitate bendingthereof to permit the cap to be removed from the nozzle opening.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,447,117 2/1923.Balison et al. 222556 2,625,306 1/ 1953 Murphy 222-498 2,851,203 9/1958Nowak 222546 X 2,889,089 6/1959 Herrick et al. 222-545 X 2,891,7046/1959 Morrison 222-562 X 2,921,716 1/1960 Schiller 222-563 X 3,045,8607/1962 Desgagne 222546 X 3,113,706 10/1963 Wickman 222-570 X RAPHAEL M.LUPO, Primary Examiner. WALTER SOBIN, Examiner.

1. A CLOSURE STRUCTURE FOR A RECEPTACLE FOR GRANULAR MATERIAL,COMPRISING A TAPERED NOZZLE HAVING A LARGER OPENING AT ONE END AND ASMALLER OPENING AT THE OTHER END, SAID SMALLER OPENING BEING DISPOSED INA PLANE FORMING AN ANGLE WITH THE AXIS OF SAID NOZZLE, AND SAID NOZZLEHAVING AN INTURNED WALL PORTION ADJACENT THE OUTERMOST EDGE OF SAIDSMALLER OPENING FORMING AN ANGLE WITH THE ADJACENT WALL PORTION OF THENOZZLE, AND DEFINING A PORTION IN SAID NOZZLE WHEREIN MATERIAL ISENTRAPPED WHEN OTHER MATERIAL IS BEING DISPENSED, AND A CAP FOR SAIDSMALLER OPENING, AND MEANS FOR SECURING SAID NOZZLE TO SAID RECEPTACLEINCLUDING A PERIPHERAL GROOVE FORMED IN A RIM ON THE RECEPTACLE, SAIDRIM ON THE RECEPTACLE HAVING A TAPER MATCHING AND CONTIGUOUS TO THENOZZLE, SAID GROOVE INCLUDING AN UPPER SURFACE LYING IN A PLANESUBSTANTIALLY PERPENDICULAR TO THE AXIS OF THE RECEPTACLE AND DEFINING ASHART CORNER WITH THE RIM, AND A RIB FORMED ON THE NOZZLE AND RECEIVABLEIN SAID GROOVE, SAID RIB HAVING AN UPPER SURFACE ENGAGEABLE WITH SAIDUPPER SURFACE OF THE GROOVE, THEREBY LOCKING THE NOZZLE IN PLACE ON THERECEPTACLE, AND SAID RIB HAVING A CONICAL LOWER SURFACE TO FACILITATEATTACHMENT OF THE NOZZLE ON THE RECEPTACLE RIM BY PRESSING THE NOZZLETHEREON, THEREBY CAUSING THE CONICAL SURFACE TO ENGAGE SAID SLIDE OVERTHE RIM AND TO MUTUALLY DEFORM THE NOZZLE AND THE RECEPTACLE RIM TOENABLE THE RIB TO SNAP INTO THE GROOVE, AND THE CIRCUMFERENTIAL EDGE OFTHE RIM PORTION OF THE RECEPTACLE BEING LOCATED INWARDLY OF AND ENGAGEDBY THE NOZZLE AND BEING SPACED INWARDLY OF THE CONTIGUOUS OUTER SURFACESOF THE NOZZLE AND RIM.